Dammit Matthew Dammit - 05.31.11

1. How did you get your band name?
I did a lot of drugs as a kid, which made my mother frustrated. The band’s name was a frequent admonishment of hers.

2. How did this band get started?
We’re trash collectors from the year 3077. Trash collecting in the future involves a lot of differential calculus and all that, so we figured it would be much easier to create magnificent rock ‘n roll.

3. What bands are you influenced by?
I don’t really keep track of who I steal from, so I’ll just list some stuff I like. Thee Headcoats, Fu Manchu, Devo, Teengenerate, Weezer, the Ramones, Nirvana, AC/DC.

4. If you could tour with any bands, past or present, who would they be and why?
Zeppelin, for the smack and hotel trashing, to say nothing of the cash and traveling by jet. There are a lot of fucked up specimens who I’d like to study in close quarters for extended periods of time, really.

5. Best food to eat on tour?
Taco Bell’s Fresco Bean Burrito. Cheap, and relatively healthy. It’s beans and tomatoes in a tortilla.

6. Why should people listen to your band?
I’m pretty sure we’re one of the best rock ‘n roll bands in the world right now. What we’re doing is catchy and different from everything else. We started the band to create more great songs, because there really are so few relative to the total amount out there. At the same time, a lot of what other people think is great I hate and vice versa, so as far as other people I dunno.

7. If you could be any athlete, which athlete would you switch places with?
The fastest one. Then I would steal everything.

8. If you won a Grammy, who would you thank?
Robots, and I would preemptively beg for mercy. Things are going to get interesting in a few years if you know what I mean.

9. If you could change something about the music industry, what would it be?
Higher pay for musicians. Duh.

10. Memorable tour experience?
We’ve had a couple. Mostly witnessing sweet crime-related stuff like fights and a high speed chase. Also, we’ve seen one or two horrifying car accidents, and those stay with you. You would not believe how much blood the human body actually contains.

11. What does AP.net mean to you?
I bought Absolute Punk in the future, and it’s making me a metric shit-ton of money. Thanks, guys, for the glory, fame, and massive wealth. AP provides quality content in a variety of areas. It’s like an e-newspaper version of our band that way.

12. What is your favorite song to play?
Anything with long instrumental sections, so I can walk around and screw with the audience. I just bought a wireless system so this will get even more fun in our coming shows.

13. What is your vacation spot of choice?
I like to visit friends who live out of town, but mostly I can’t afford them.

14. What music reminds you of your childhood?
The alphabet song? I dunno. A lot of stuff I listen to I discovered in middle school and haven’t gotten tired of yet.

15. If you could have any super power, what would it be? Why?
I already have several thanks to cybernetic implants and antigraviton emitters. I refuse to fly, though, because that would freak people out.

16. Any pre-show superstitions or rituals?
Drinking! We always do “That’s the Way I Like It” by KC and the Sunshine Band for vocal soundchecks and Blitzkrieg Bop for the guitar soundchecks. They’re both perfect for soundchecks because there’s no starting and stopping.

17. What is something that most fans don't know about you?
Probably mundane stuff that isn’t that interesting. I don’t really have any secrets. Roald Dahl insisted that his autobiography wasn’t an autobiography because it didn’t have every single boring detail of his life. I can get behind that.

18. What is your assessment of the current state of radio? Do you think it's a place where your band could flourish?
We’re already flourishing on the radio thanks to the popularity of our tunes with some DJs…as far as mainstream radio there is a lot of catchy stuff so we could probably fit in. It seems like most acts today are created by the record companies themselves, or at least really heavily marketed, so we have a disadvantage in that area. We don’t do a lot to promote ourselves because promotion isn’t that fun to do, and we’ve never done studies to determine how well we do with record-buying demographics or altered our sound to have greater commercial appeal.

19. What do you like to do in your spare time?
If I’m not at work, I’m doing something band related. We’re not dilettantes.

20. What kind of hidden talents do you have?
I can make fart sounds with my collarbone. Also my hands, in addition to the obvious butt.